What the sci-fi thriller “The Signal” lacks in story, it certainly makes up for in style. It’s a low-budget beauty from rising indie director Will Eubank, who cut his teeth as a cinematographer. And, it shows. Someone should give this guy a big budget and let him have at it.

“The Signal” is the young director’s sophomore effort and he accomplishes a lot with a small budget and little time. The acting is also pretty terrific. It stars a trio of up-and-comers in Brenton Thwaites (“Maleficent”), Olivia Cooke (“Bates Motel”) and Beau Knapp (“Super 8”).

The story follows three M.I.T. students, Nic (Thwaites), Haley (Cooke) and Jonah (Knapp), on a cross-country trip. They get diverted to a creepy Nevada desert in pursuit of a rival hacker. Everything goes dark and there’s a loud scream off-camera. Soon, they are surrounded by men in haz-mat suits and strapped to hospital beds in a government facility where no one will give them answers. Intense – and frustrating – mystery ensues.

Veteran actor Laurence Fishburne (“The Matrix”) anchors the film. He commands the screen with his seriously menacing portrayal of government agent Damon, even though his face is hidden behind a layer of plastic the entire film. Eubank smartly shoots him tight so none of that creepy nuance is lost. Thwaites, a dead-ringer for a young Josh Hartnett, holds his own against Fishburne in the film’s interrogation scenes.

Part “Blair Witch,” part “Twilight Zone,” the movie is extremely ambitious. The problem, and it’s a big one, is the story doesn’t hold up. Nothing makes much sense and Eubank is slow to reveal anything, which is frustrating. But you stay with it, and are rewarded in bits and pieces, such as Lin Shaye’s Mirabelle, who is a crazy breath of fresh air in an otherwise mindbending narrative. Eubank’s direction, the stunning visuals and a game cast prop up the weak narrative (written by Eubank, his brother, Carlyle, and David Frigerio) to make the film watchable.

Eubank never yields on blowing your mind with imaginatively choreographed action sequences that throb with energy, as Nic, Jonah and Haley try to make sense of their new bionic limbs and escape from their weird “prison” to try to figure out what’s happened. If you like a puzzle, then Eubank’s “Signal” is a call worth answering.

Dana Barbuto may be reached at dbarbuto@ledger.com or follow her on Twitter @dbarbuto_Ledger.